Novel and versatile room temperature ionic liquids for energy storage

Due to their high glass transition temperatures, ionic liquids based on closo-boron clusters have been long discounted from consideration in energy storage applications. Here, we report a strategy that resulted in a novel family of closo-boron-cluster based room temperature ionic liquids (RTILs). Their very low glass transition temperatures, high cathodic and anodic stabilities and compatibility with Li and Mg metals make them excellent candidates as electrolytes for rechargeable batteries and hybrid devices.